The night after WrestleMania X8, he came in like a force of nature and had one of the most impressive and dominant rookies years in WWE history.
That was Brock Lesnar.
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Coming from the then-WWF’s training ground, OVW, Lesnar tested his skills against the likes of John Cena, Batista, and Randy Orton before making his grand debut on Monday Night Raw on March 18, 2002. It was during a hardcore battle royal featuring when Lesnar came into the ring and obliterated Al Snow, Maven, and Spike Dudley.
Jim Ross had dubbed him the hottest free agent and put over Lesnar’s strength as he delivered his finishing move, which would later be known as the F-5. The audience had no idea that they were witnessing the birth of one of the most destructive forces in combat sports history, but were in awe of his brute strength.
Lesnar was soon joined by Paul Heyman, who, in kayfabe, was fired from the WWF, and would continue to manage Lesnar through his first WWE Championship and surprising return to the company 8 years later.
It was hard to predict where the company was going to go with Lesnar after his debut, but was it obvious that after he won the King of the Ring that the WWE had great plans for their Next Big Thing, even if Lesnar himself wanted something more down the line.
The night after WrestleMania is usually reserved for new stars to make their biggest impact and much like Lesnar did 15 years ago, that tradition carries on to today.
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